1923 – Queen’s University 54, Regina Roughriders 0

Queen’s may not have performed up to expectations in the 1922 Grey Cup game, but they sure made up for it in 1923.

For the second time in three years, the losing team was shut out in the national final. In fact, it was the largest margin of victory in Grey Cup history, as Queen’s humbled Regina for its second straight championship. It was the worst defeat since the 1907 Dominion championship, when the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association trounced Peterborough 72-0.

Queen’s took a 1-0 lead on Pep Leadley’s rouge. It turned out to be the only point the students would need. They closed the opening quarter up 7-0 when Harry Batstone scored his first of two touchdowns. He had gained 45 yards on a run to help set up his score.

Regina could have escaped the first half trailing by only 14 but Bricks Peebles made an untimely fumble around his own goal line. Bill Campbell promptly fell on it for his second touchdown of the game, giving Queen’s a 20-0 advantage at intermission.

Things went from bad to worse for the Roughriders in the third quarter, as Queen’s struck for four touchdowns. Johnny Evans crossed the goal line two times, while Batstone and Liz Walker each scored once. It was more of the same in the final 15 minutes as Carl Quinn and Roy Reynolds both reached the end zone.

Regina had its best chance to break the shutout in the second quarter when Leadley’s kick was blocked and the Roughriders got possession on the Queen’s 20-yard line. The Westerners failed to gain ground on two attempts, and were unsuccessful on an attempted field goal when Scotty McEachern drove the ball into his players.

One Regina player which earned praise despite the lopsided score was Howie Milne, a talented fly wing who broke up many end runs by Queen’s with his hard tackling.

For Queen’s, it was a fitting end to an undefeated season in which the team outscored their opponents 124-14 and gave up just one touchdown. For the Roughriders, it would take another eight trips to the final before they were able to claim the top prize in Canadian football. Their first Grey Cup championship was still over four decades away.